Waqar was a `total failure` as head coach: Kamran Akmal

Lahore [Pakistan], July 28 (ANI): Pakistan wicketkeeper-batsman Kamran Akmal has lashed out at former head coach Waqar Younis for causing a lot of damage to the country's cricket and failing to guide the national side to success during his two separate stints as the head coach. In an interview to a TV channel, Kamran revealed that Waqar's enthusiasm to `experiment` with the players and sidelining important players had put the Pakistan team lagging behind by two to three years. "With due respect, Waqar was a failure as coach and he caused lot of damage to Pakistan cricket. In his enthusiasm to experiment and sideline established players, he put the national team back by two to three years,"the Dawn quoted Kamran as saying. It should be noted that this is the first time that a current Pakistan player has openly criticised Waqar for being an abject failure in his two separate tenures as head coach in 2010-2011 and 2014- 2016. The wicketkeeper-batsman, who appeared in 53 Tests and 157 ODIs for Pakistan, said that Waqar certainly had issues with some players and that he also had no plans to take the national side forward. "I don't know the reasons but Waqar certainly had issues with some players. He had no plans on how to take Pakistan forward. An example was when he went to the 2015 World Cup and asked Younis Khan to open the innings and then sidelined Sarfraz Ahmed until late in the tournament," Kamran said. Although Kamran admitted that Waqar was a great player, he insisted that the fast bowling great was a `total failure` as a coach. "I can remember Umar Akmal scored a hundred in an Asia Cup match and in the next game he was batting behind Shahid Afridi and others. Waqar no doubt was a great player for Pakistan but as a coach he was a total failure," he said. Waqar, who was forced to step down after the national side fared poorly in the last World Twenty in India in 2016, had criticized Kamran on various occasions besides also questioning his selection in the team. The 35-year-old was recalled to the team for the tour to West Indies earlier this year and Waqar had questioned what was the need of keeping two wicket-keepers in the side. "I have played under different coaches including Bob Woolmer and I can say they used to plan and they used to create a rapport with the players. Waqar insisted on training hard all the time and not having the players also focus on their skills and cricket development was damaging to the team. The best part is that Waqar as coach himself kept two keepers in the side," Kamran said. (ANI)